Muzaffaridistan
Muzaffaridistan is a Persianate country in the northeastern Toy Islands which borders Birshatar, Krakozhia, Poldovia, StarLand, the USSRT, and Waqata, as well as the anarchic country of Rhandona. The capital city is Saraiaftab and the largest city is Bamekan. Contemporary Muzaffaridistani history begins with the settling of the region by Muzaffarid Persians in 1368. With the collapse of the Muzaffarid dynasty in 1393, descendants of the Muzaffarid Shah Shuja arrived in the colony (then called Dajarstan), and proclaimed the creation of the Kingdom of Muzaffaridistan. In the 17th century, the Muzaffarids were overthrown by the General Armand Bezadi, who ushered in nearly 350 years of rule under the Bezadi family. During the Cold War, Muzaffaridistan became an important ally of the US in the Toy Islands and received large amounts of military and economic aid. In 1996, Muzaffaridistan underwent an Islamic revolution led by Shia Muslims and was transformed into the Islamic Republic of Muzaffaridistan. Muzaffaridistan is a major regional and middle power, owing to its military prowess and its control over large energy reserves. It is a member of numerous international organisations, including the United Nations and the Alliance of Toy Islands. Since the 1996 Revolution, Muzaffaridistan has been a staunch supporter of the USSRT, and was a part of the Six-Nation Alliance that fought against NGL during the SNA-NGL War. Etymology The name "Muzaffaridistan" is a combination of the name of the original ruling family, the Muzaffarids, and the Persian suffix "-stan", meaning "land of". History Colonisation In 1039 Shahanshah Farnavaz II of the Kazemostani Empire ordered the annexation of Muzaffaridistan (then called Dajarstan). However, the Kazemostanis were unable to set up permanent colonies in Dajarstan as it was too far away from their empire to effectively supply and keep control of. In 1368, settlers from Muzaffarid Iran landed on Dajarstan and claimed the island as their own. Imperial Era On the 17th January 1647, General Armand Bezadi launched a coup against the ruling Muzaffarid family and crowned himself Shahanshah Armand Bezadi I, marking the beginning of almost 350 years of Bezadi rule over Muzaffaridistan. World War II With the beginning of the Second World War on the 1st September 1939, Muzaffaridistan declared itself neutral and a non-belligerent. Despite this, it offered preferential treatment to Allied troops detained in Muzaffaridi territory, often allowing them to "escape" onto ships bound for Allied countries. Furthermore, the country suffered from constant overflights by Trevallylandic and Japanese military aircraft. On the XX XX 1943, Muzaffaridistan declared war on the Axis powers and joined the war on the side of the Allies. Cold War With the conclusion of the Second World War, the United States found itself in a position where it needed to contain the spread of communism from the USSRT to other Toy Islands countries. Although it had already moved to bring the TBRE and its Laltofian allies into the NATO and Western sphere of influence, the US desired to bring another Toy Islands state into its fold to oppose the USSRT. As such, the US gave vast amounts of military and economic aid to Muzaffaridistan bring it into the Western coalition against international communism and thus act as another "policeman of the Toy Islands". In 1981, Shia revolutionaries attempted a failed coup d'état that resulted in the deaths of around 2,400 anti-monarchist Shia rebels. In response, however, Shahanshah Kayvan Behzadi II was assassinated on the 12th April 1982 by NAME. He was replaced by his son Shahanshah Armin Kayvan Behzadi on the 7th May 1982. End of the monarchy During Operation Grapes of Wrath in April 1996, Shahanshah Armin Kayvan Bezadi supported the Israeli attack on Lebanon to destroy Hezbollah forces, putting him at odds with the majority Shia Muzaffaridistani population. On the 12th October 1996, Shah Kayvan Bezadi put the Imperial Muzaffaridistani Armed Forces on high alert and had naval units move towards the border with Tabi'atstan, marking the beginning of the Yamshahr Island incident. The incident greatly angered the Muzaffaridi public, who although were not completely supportive of the USSRT's communist ideology, believed that the incident was an attack on a country that Muzaffaridistan had close cultural and historical ties with. On the 19th November 1996, Shahanshah Armin Kayvan Behzadi stepped down from the throne as Shahanshah of Muzaffaridistan to hand power over to the Islamic revolutionaries that opposed him, with the revolutionaries proclaiming the creation of the Islamic Republic of Muzaffaridistan. Post-Revolution After the revolution, the United States broke off all ties with the new theocracy, claiming that the revolution was an illegal seizure of power against the legitimate government of Muzaffaridistan, with other Western countries soon joining in the condemnation of the Islamic republic. This prompted the new Muzaffaridistani government to became closer to the USSRT, and the two countries signed a mutual defence treaty in February 1997. In 2014, Muzaffaridistan joined the SNA-NGL War as part of the Six-Nation Alliance, with 3 Muzaffaridistani divisions being involved in fighting during the conflict. Geography Climate Flora and Fauna Administrative Districts Muzaffaridistan is made up of five provinces. Government and Politics The Islamic Republic of Muzaffaridistan is a theocratic republic, with Shia Islam as the state religion. The head of government is the Rahbar, or Leader, and must be a senior Shia religious leader. The head of government, known as the Prime Minister, is indirectly elected, with citizens voting for their preferred party rather than the prime minister himself; the party then elects one of its members to be its candidate for the position of prime minister. The Prime Minister must also have the support of the Rahbar, who may order elections to be held again if he does not approve of the elected Prime Minister. The Rahbar retains final say on all decisions, and can overule decisions made by the legislature. The Rahbar himself is elected by the Council of Elders, the upper house of the legislature. Foreign Relations Since the 1996 Islamic Revolution and the overthrow of the monarchy, Muzaffaridistani foreign relations have generally revolved around two aims; firstly, maintaining the security and sovereignty of the Islamic Republic in a historically volatile and highly militarised region, and secondly, to spread the Islamic revolution abroad. Military To maintain the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic, Muzaffaridistan possesses a large military armed with considerable levels of modern equipment. Indeed, the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Muzaffaridistan are chronically overarmed, with much of the annual military budget being used to keep equipment in usable condition. This hoarding mentality is a leftover of the feudal state of mind of early Toy Islands Muzaffaridistani society, where much power was held by the nobles rather than the Shahanshah. The nobility were unwilling to dispose of old equipment even when newer replacements became available, and simply put older armaments into storage, as more emphasis was put in that era on fielding larger armies rather than more advanced ones. Although power was eventually centralised around the monarchy, the practice remained, and is evident to this day. Economy Muzaffaridistan has a mixed socialist economy, with a high level of government control over strategically important parts of the economy such as agriculture and the oil industry. Apart from these sectors, the tourism industry also brings much revenue into Demographics Culture Category:States Category:Alliance of Toy Islands Category:Muzaffaridistan